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The Tide is the final track from the debut EP “Myopic” from my band Defy The Ocean. It’s probably my favourite track from the EP because of its content and its sprawling structure. I also worked tirelessly on the lyrics and am really happy with the result.

The Scene

You and everyone you know are buried neck deep. Sand is blown into your eyes and mouth as you stare down the ocean, reminded of your place. Next to you is a man you’ve never met before, but you know his type. He speaks of God and calamity and righteousness, the impending roll of the tide across the sand is his lord’s way of wiping the slate clean.

You look into his eyes, gleaming with a hope that is wholly absent from your heart and you hate him for it. Teetering between rage and pity you close your eyes and wish your arms were not buried deep in the sand because you would gouge out those lying gelatinous spheres and leave only black abyssal pits of nothingness.

You know that he is wrong, you know his undying faith has justified a world view that places his needs, human needs (and greed) above all else. We are, after all, chosen, he would say. Adam and Eve were not monkeys and the immaculate conception did not occur in canines. We are human and we are important. We have souls.

On one hand you can’t wait for the tide to wash over his mouth and nose and watch his expression turn to fear as that moment of doubt creeps in: “What if there’s nothing else?”. On the other you dread it and what it means for all you know.

There’s an inevitable sadness creeping over you as you wonder at what could have been, had we been stronger and less self-obsessed things might have been different. But no matter now, the tide approaches and it will not discriminate, it will invoke those looks of terror upon us all.

The Song

[soundcloud id=’60076452′]

The Lyrics

You’ve got yourself a better plan,
This roar a lie unseen.
You’ve got yourself a better plan
And you wait for it…

I’ve got a story
But you’re not going to like my words.
You cast your hopes unto the sails
With your eyes closed.
While you’re dreaming of these distant ships,
Your head’s buried in absolvent myth.

Horizons are glimmering
And still we reminisce
About what could have been.

I am this anchor and I am this squall.
I’ll have you dreaming of the end.
I’ll have you foaming at the brink again and again.
You’re casting vicious glances overhead,
I’ll play this role of saviour from your life of pretend.

You too must suffer this.
Pacified and dumb
And blind to what you’ve done,
Some kind of heartless catalyst.

Where is your love?
You said he would be here.
I could have told you he would fail us all.
The look in your eyes in almost worth the pain.
To see it rise and know we’ll all be washed away.

So dig your heels in
And know you played a part in this.
A parting gift.

Horizons are glimmering
And still we reminisce
About what we could have been.

Unravelling before our eyes,
Like vapour in night skies.
Shedding skin and parasites,
The silenced realign.

Unravelling before our eyes,
Like vapour in night skies.
Shedding skin and parasites,
Your proof for the divine.

Empty words you lived your life by,
Answered by the silent night.
Empty promises that held you
Warm at winter’s height,
Washed away by the tide.